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souldiver
Guest
There are the biblical Flying House and Super Book. I saw one time in the internet that Digimon is a Christian anime.
- Status
Y
YehoiakhinEx232
Guest
Trigun albeit that’s directed to a much older audience and is much more subtle in it’s message
V
Valiente88
Guest
Eeeeeeeehhh…
I’m not an Otaku by any stretch of the imagination (wrong gender and far too old!) but I’ve seen a couple of different anime while I lived in Japan for a time, often part of a language learning course my company provided.
From what I do understand however, if you’re looking for “Christian” themes in anime you’re going to be a long time looking. To the Japanese Christianity is just a rather exotic mythos with quirky clothes, rather like how westerners might view Japanese Shinto Shrine maidens.
At best Christianity (and Catholicism especially) is portrayed as a slightly backward uppity moral code with a strange dress code (Fate, Kuroshitsuji) but at worst the Catholic Church is a tyrannical power that wants to take over the world and/or slaughter all the non belivers (Hellsing Ultimate).
Not to mention females in anime, even in the “magical girl” anime for children are usually hyper sexualized from what I gathered (lots of pantie shots ect).
The only one I know that I can suggest is Ah! My Goddess, but even then at least two characters are overtly sexual and as the name suggests the cast features numerous self proclaimed Goddesses.
I’m not an Otaku by any stretch of the imagination (wrong gender and far too old!) but I’ve seen a couple of different anime while I lived in Japan for a time, often part of a language learning course my company provided.
From what I do understand however, if you’re looking for “Christian” themes in anime you’re going to be a long time looking. To the Japanese Christianity is just a rather exotic mythos with quirky clothes, rather like how westerners might view Japanese Shinto Shrine maidens.
At best Christianity (and Catholicism especially) is portrayed as a slightly backward uppity moral code with a strange dress code (Fate, Kuroshitsuji) but at worst the Catholic Church is a tyrannical power that wants to take over the world and/or slaughter all the non belivers (Hellsing Ultimate).
Not to mention females in anime, even in the “magical girl” anime for children are usually hyper sexualized from what I gathered (lots of pantie shots ect).
The only one I know that I can suggest is Ah! My Goddess, but even then at least two characters are overtly sexual and as the name suggests the cast features numerous self proclaimed Goddesses.
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ProdglArchitect
Guest
This statement is generally true. I watch quite a bit of anime, and Christianity rarely get’s a proper portrayal. There are a number of anime which reflect Christian themes at times (Self sacrifice is a big one in a lot of anime), but they are never actually presented as Christian in nature. that said, there are a number of anime which do get it right. As another poster said, Trigun has its hand in several Christian themes (specifically, persecution and always striving to do right despite extreme opposition.) that’s the only one that comes to mind readily though.
This, again
for a deist, you’re pretty spot on here One anime that doesn’t show a realistic portrayal, but which I love dearly is Chrono Crusade. It has nuns killing demons with guns, and a demon who turned back to God (not possible in Catholic theology), but despite that it’s an excellent story that paints religion in a fairly positive light throughout.The ones that are actually oriented to children don’t play up the fanservice. In fact, there are very specific genres which do, ecchi and harem anime being the two main offenders. Martial Arts anime is pretty bad about it too some of the time. As a rule, Mahou Shoujo (Magical girl) anime doesn’t tend to sexualize its characters because part of the point is that the children are innocent. There are exceptions, and the “Moe” subculture has definitely had a negative impact and resulted in more overt sexualization of objectively young characters, but it’s not a difficult problem to circumvent if you know what to look for.
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Rhubarb
Guest
Azumanga Daio was entertaining, and mostly harmless.
How does one define “good for Christians” though?
How does one define “good for Christians” though?
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ProdglArchitect
Guest
That teacher though ._.
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suko
Guest
Everyone pretty much already said what needed to be said, so I’ll just suggest some shows that I think would generally be ok for a Christian to watch:
pretty much anything from Studio Ghibli
Angel Beats (characters go through something like a purgatory)
Kids on the Slope
Sherlock Hound
Shugo Chara
Monster Rancher
Pokemon
pretty much anything from Studio Ghibli
Angel Beats (characters go through something like a purgatory)
Kids on the Slope
Sherlock Hound
Shugo Chara
Monster Rancher
Pokemon
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souldiver
Guest
Something that doesn’t conflict with Christianity and shows Christian values.
Y
youkokun
Guest
Speaking as someone who was introduced to anime in 7th grade, I’d say your best bet is to just be discerning in your choices. If it says ecchi or hentai it’s a no-go. A lot of goofy comedy animes have off-color humor in the fanservice department because Japanese culture regards sexual jokes in the same way French culture does, but closeted: the attitude is that sex is everywhere, and using it for a laugh is harmless.
If you do not mind toplessness for humor, I recommend the mangaka Rumiko Takahashi, who did Maison Ikkoku, Urusei Yatsura, Ranma 1/2, and Inuyasha. The former two are her older ones, and you can find all the episodes of Maison Ikkoku on YouTube: I highly recommend it especially because it’s slice-of-life drama romance and pretty darn safe. Ramna 1/2 features a transvestite protagonist; it’s not what you think. Throughout the story he maintains his male identity and never identifies himself as female, only exaggerating feminine characteristics to reach an end. The female protagonist, Akane, is considered a “macho” tomboy because she excels in fighting and rage but is clumsy and has difficulty in homemaker skills. Both sides are played for COMEDY: it’s not a study promoting gender swapping, but rather slapstick done exceedingly well, IMO.
Inuyasha is amazing, though repetitive. It features Shinto priestesses and Buddhist monks, as well as demons. I find it interesting that the Buddhist monks are often corrupt, lecherous, and not well liked by the people…sorta like how we’re told the Church was in medieval times…It’s subtited “a Feudal Fairytale” because it’s half-set 500 years before 2000 a.d. in Japan. Holiness is apparently something you’re either born with or work at through helping and healing others, to judge by Kikyo and Kagome. And when I say “demons”, I must say that Japanese “demons” are more like monsters and ogres. So, there are wolf-demons and spider-demons, and the half-dog-demon Inuyasha. It is quite the journey.
Fullmetal Alchemist I’m sure you’ve heard recommended. It’s great. Watch.
I second the recommendation of Trigun. It’s timeless, and was always more popular here in the West than in Japan because Mr. Nightow the mangaka is actually Catholic–yah, like Shusaku Endo.
Princess Tutu if you want a good story. Watch the YouTube AMV “Hold Me Now” and decide from there if it’s your cup of tea.
Death Note involves shinigami, “gods of death”–that’s another thing, the Japanese word “kami” refers to benevolent or neutral spirits of great power, so a water demon is like the troll under the bride on the Billy Goats story while a water god is like, well, the water god in Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis–who kill people by writing names in notebooks. One of these notebooks is obtained by Light Yagami, who opportunistically decides to play God–this is explicitly stated by him–and execute criminals. He starts by calling himself Justice, but L, the detective who’s after him, calls him out as a childish tyrant. This series is not what I’d call pro-life, since even L hopes to catch the killer and have him executed for his mass murdering, but it’s a great thrill and you just watch the evil ooze out of Light the further he goes along while the police do their duty and hope to survive.
Baccano is only 16 episodes long and just…I can’t even. The Mafia are involved, and immortals, but the heavy subjects are kept to a minimum. The final moral of the story is to be bombastic in whatever you do. Isaac and Miria set the bar high as a married couple.
Fairy Tail has a lot of fanservice, but the animation is so clean, I dunno, all I see is cartoon lines. It’s an action story neatly divided into arcs with a minimum on romance and maximum on friendship and community. Literally, in this story, friendship solves everything. Also, it has a fun Celtic rock soundtrack.
Cowboy Bebop is a CLASSIC. You cannot not watch this series. It has something for EVERYBODY. Watch episode 5 first if you want to decide whether to see it all.
Sergeant Frog is just…it makes me laugh. See the Season One highlights on YouTube if you’re curious. It’s about the Armpit Platoon, a group of rejects from the alien Keronian army come to destroy Earth–but because they have trouble managing their resources they rarely get anywhere.
Do not watch Chobits, as it has a “free love” message. Do not watch Excel Saga, because although it is funny it’s not innocent like Ranma 1/2. If Ranma 1/2 is Tom and Jerry morally speaking (egads all that violence!..is purely for comedic purposes), then Excel Saga is the Simpson’s Itchy and Scratchy.
In other words, be discerning.
If you do not mind toplessness for humor, I recommend the mangaka Rumiko Takahashi, who did Maison Ikkoku, Urusei Yatsura, Ranma 1/2, and Inuyasha. The former two are her older ones, and you can find all the episodes of Maison Ikkoku on YouTube: I highly recommend it especially because it’s slice-of-life drama romance and pretty darn safe. Ramna 1/2 features a transvestite protagonist; it’s not what you think. Throughout the story he maintains his male identity and never identifies himself as female, only exaggerating feminine characteristics to reach an end. The female protagonist, Akane, is considered a “macho” tomboy because she excels in fighting and rage but is clumsy and has difficulty in homemaker skills. Both sides are played for COMEDY: it’s not a study promoting gender swapping, but rather slapstick done exceedingly well, IMO.
Inuyasha is amazing, though repetitive. It features Shinto priestesses and Buddhist monks, as well as demons. I find it interesting that the Buddhist monks are often corrupt, lecherous, and not well liked by the people…sorta like how we’re told the Church was in medieval times…It’s subtited “a Feudal Fairytale” because it’s half-set 500 years before 2000 a.d. in Japan. Holiness is apparently something you’re either born with or work at through helping and healing others, to judge by Kikyo and Kagome. And when I say “demons”, I must say that Japanese “demons” are more like monsters and ogres. So, there are wolf-demons and spider-demons, and the half-dog-demon Inuyasha. It is quite the journey.
Fullmetal Alchemist I’m sure you’ve heard recommended. It’s great. Watch.
I second the recommendation of Trigun. It’s timeless, and was always more popular here in the West than in Japan because Mr. Nightow the mangaka is actually Catholic–yah, like Shusaku Endo.
Princess Tutu if you want a good story. Watch the YouTube AMV “Hold Me Now” and decide from there if it’s your cup of tea.
Death Note involves shinigami, “gods of death”–that’s another thing, the Japanese word “kami” refers to benevolent or neutral spirits of great power, so a water demon is like the troll under the bride on the Billy Goats story while a water god is like, well, the water god in Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis–who kill people by writing names in notebooks. One of these notebooks is obtained by Light Yagami, who opportunistically decides to play God–this is explicitly stated by him–and execute criminals. He starts by calling himself Justice, but L, the detective who’s after him, calls him out as a childish tyrant. This series is not what I’d call pro-life, since even L hopes to catch the killer and have him executed for his mass murdering, but it’s a great thrill and you just watch the evil ooze out of Light the further he goes along while the police do their duty and hope to survive.
Baccano is only 16 episodes long and just…I can’t even. The Mafia are involved, and immortals, but the heavy subjects are kept to a minimum. The final moral of the story is to be bombastic in whatever you do. Isaac and Miria set the bar high as a married couple.
Fairy Tail has a lot of fanservice, but the animation is so clean, I dunno, all I see is cartoon lines. It’s an action story neatly divided into arcs with a minimum on romance and maximum on friendship and community. Literally, in this story, friendship solves everything. Also, it has a fun Celtic rock soundtrack.
Cowboy Bebop is a CLASSIC. You cannot not watch this series. It has something for EVERYBODY. Watch episode 5 first if you want to decide whether to see it all.
Sergeant Frog is just…it makes me laugh. See the Season One highlights on YouTube if you’re curious. It’s about the Armpit Platoon, a group of rejects from the alien Keronian army come to destroy Earth–but because they have trouble managing their resources they rarely get anywhere.
Do not watch Chobits, as it has a “free love” message. Do not watch Excel Saga, because although it is funny it’s not innocent like Ranma 1/2. If Ranma 1/2 is Tom and Jerry morally speaking (egads all that violence!..is purely for comedic purposes), then Excel Saga is the Simpson’s Itchy and Scratchy.
In other words, be discerning.
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youkokun
Guest
I almost forgot After School Nightmare! It’s not very popular but it’s got a beautiful pro-life message…oh wait it’s only a manga…Darn the world’s scheming!
Fruits Basket has psychological themes. Everybody has a trauma. It is very heavy and it is about control, so, thematically it ends up in an un-Christian worldview, that everything must end, but it has very human moments.
Naruto is for middle schoolers with too much time.
Dragonball Z Kai will get you up to speed on a lot of culture.
Kodocha is now available dubbed on YouTube and it’s hilarious. It’s about kids, but trust me when I say the slapstick and impromptu raps are not all there is to it. It features abandonment, neglect, and a child whose parents are divorcing…so I guess you could say that it’s talks a lot about adults by focusing on children. But only rarely, because it’s so much FUN. My favorite is episode 39, but you only need to watch maybe till episode 4 to decide. And don’t worry, the thing about Rei being her boyfriend is addressed.
Fruits Basket has psychological themes. Everybody has a trauma. It is very heavy and it is about control, so, thematically it ends up in an un-Christian worldview, that everything must end, but it has very human moments.
Naruto is for middle schoolers with too much time.
Dragonball Z Kai will get you up to speed on a lot of culture.
Kodocha is now available dubbed on YouTube and it’s hilarious. It’s about kids, but trust me when I say the slapstick and impromptu raps are not all there is to it. It features abandonment, neglect, and a child whose parents are divorcing…so I guess you could say that it’s talks a lot about adults by focusing on children. But only rarely, because it’s so much FUN. My favorite is episode 39, but you only need to watch maybe till episode 4 to decide. And don’t worry, the thing about Rei being her boyfriend is addressed.
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Hobbes42
Guest
There’s Roronoui Kenshin, old-but pretty good. It has an interesting theme of redemption and repentance throughout the whole thing.
Oddly enough, most all the anime I’ve come across has gay people/cross dressers figuring prominently in it at least some of the time
cultural thing? (One Piece was grand-until they introduced the flamboyant crew 
)
Also, anyone here watch any Bleach? I have been wondering what the general gist is.
Oddly enough, most all the anime I’ve come across has gay people/cross dressers figuring prominently in it at least some of the time
cultural thing? (One Piece was grand-until they introduced the flamboyant crew )Also, anyone here watch any Bleach? I have been wondering what the general gist is.
C
CesarAugustus
Guest
Azumanga Daioh has some insinuations of lesbianism, according to what I’ve read, and at least, one girl with a one-sided crush on another girl.
Angel Beats: The concept of rebellion against God is disturbing, plus I’ve read it has some yuri and yaoi subtext or content, -so popular in many anime shows of recent years-.
Shugo Shara: The is one guradian character (chara) with a devil-like appareance. I don’t know if it has instances of yuri or yaoi (lesbianism and homosexuality, for the ones that don’t know what these terms mean) subtext.
About Kids on the slope, I’ve read good things about it. Does it has objectionable elements?
God bless you!
L
Laughing_Crow
Guest
It seems to be a kind of stereotype, the same way western culture has its stereotype characters. Even Rurouni Kenshin had one (though he lacked any major pull in the show and was a villain)There’s Roronoui Kenshin, old-but pretty good. It has an interesting theme of redemption and repentance throughout the whole thing.
Oddly enough, most all the anime I’ve come across has gay people/cross dressers figuring prominently in it at least some of the time
Also, anyone here watch any Bleach? I have been wondering what the general gist is.
In all honesty you’re best off looking back at older anime if you want a less ‘immoral’ viewing as a lot of anime nowdays seems to be focused on echi or ‘waifu war material’. .
One thing I’d like to suggest is that sometimes what appears to be an anime with a bad moral often realizes it and portrays the moral itself as bad. An example is Afro Samurai, which focuses on Afro seeking revenge for his father. The anime is violent and carries the message of revenge but the anime also seems to try and portray revenge as something you should not seek. Afro throughout the series has many chances to abandon his quest and live normally but continues to seek vengeance despite the harm and death it causes. By the end Afro is sucked into the cycle of revenge and unable to escape it. In the manga its even worse as Afro discovers at the end the man he wanted to kill has been dead for years and his entire life quest has been in vain.
Death Note is another example of this. Light begins with noble, if misguided, goals of punishing criminals who have escaped justice. However as time goes on his idea of Justice changes for the worse until its ‘All against me are guilty’. It’s a good story of how power corrupts and how a person who began with good in mind becomes selfish and evil to the point the viewers go from cheering him on to wanting him to get caught.
I guess my point is if you are looking for good Christian values in anime you will be hard pressed to find some. But you can find some very good cautionary tales in anime. The difficulty is sifting through the ‘bad anime’ to find them.
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NoMondays
Guest
I see animes like a good action movie or escape, some of my faves:
Ninja Scroll
Ghost in the Shell
Akira
Of course all of them are ultra violent, but very cool.
Ninja Scroll
Ghost in the Shell
Akira
Of course all of them are ultra violent, but very cool.
E
eViLpOpTaRt
Guest
I enjoy Urusei Yatsura, Princess Lum and Chobits for the humor and warm sincerity. Sailor Moon is also good. I occasionally portray Lum at cosplay events.
Not an otaku.
Not an otaku.
A
Auvrenia
Guest
I’m in the fourth season of Bleach, and it’s good. I’m not the best with summaries, but I can say it’s good. I would recommend it.
As far as other good anime, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is one of my favorites. It places a lot of emphasis on morality, which I liked. Neither of these really have anything to do with Christianity, but I wouldn’t say they are offensive in any way.
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Whatthefluff
Guest
I have seen many many animes, and I don’t really think there are animes that are good for Christians (I haven’t seen Trigun though, so idk about it.) I can definitely say there are a vast amount of animes that are bad for Christians. I simply choose not to watch animes with heavy inappropriate themes, and suggest not watching anything that encourages sinful behavior of any sort. When suggesting specific animes I would only suggest Hunter x Hunter (2011) since, to me, it’s the best fictional story ever written (although the manga is not finished.) Any other suggestions I hold until after HxH has been seen. I don’t think it encourages sinful behavior, but it does have immodest parts to it, and has a moderately high dosage of violence. As such, I do caution Christians that are highly sensitive; some parts may make you uncomfortable.
J
janeway529
Guest
Naoki Urusawa’s Monster, Astro Boy, Phoenix, Gokusen, I My Me! Strawberry Eggs,…
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Lost_Wanderer
Guest
I’m more uncomfortable about one character being a trap than anything else.
hides from any Hunter x Hunter fans reading
K
Kamaduck
Guest
One of the cool things about anime, from a Christian perspective, is that it tends not to engage with our religious belief system* at all*, unless it’s using western angels/demons as mythological figures. On the one hand, that means you won’t be getting a lot of positive reinforcement- but on the other hand, it also means there aren’t a lot of shows that mock or actively campaign against Christianity. Western media sometimes goes out of its way to be offensive on that front.
I’m very much of the opinion that a story can be useful or beneficial to Christians without expressly promoting Christianity. A story can even be useful and beneficial if it portrays (or even advocates) some incorrect things, provided the viewer is not blindly ripping their belief system from a work of fiction. Obviously a mature viewer has to think about and process what they watch, rather than thoughtlessly accept it.
With that in mind, there are lots of animes that can be good for Christians, but very few that are necessarily good for Christians. Even the best ones aren’t going to teach you the faith, but they might showcase certain virtues or make you a better person by exposing you to the stories of heroic, virtuous individuals. Or not. It really depends on the viewer as much as on the show.
And, of course, I know some people don’t really care whether their media makes them a better person, so long as it entertains and is not, in itself, sinful. I’m obviously not one of them, but there are plenty of shows for people with that viewpoint, too.
I’ve been known to enjoy shows that many people here would find disturbing or unacceptable (I thought the ultra-violent Baccano! was awesome, whatever that says about me), but there are a lot of good shows out there. Youkokun has already listed most of my favorites (that list is freakishly close to my own- you even listed After School Nightmare!), so I’ll second all the opinions on that one (except for Kodocha, and the warnings about Chobits and Excel Saga, as I haven’t seen any of those).
I’ll add that besides its “human moments”, the Fruits Basket manga has many very good moral lessons in it. One that stuck with me was Momiji’s story about the foolish traveler, who gave away all of his possessions and eventually even his body, to people who didn’t actually need the help. In some senses, he was foolish- but Momiji doesn’t think so, and it’s clear from the larger story that such “foolish” sacrifices can have very positive consequences. Tohru manages to help the other characters by selflessly loving them and trying to help them, something that the villain of the story can’t understand. I think that message about selflessness and forgiveness, if nothing else, is a very Christian ideal. Anyways, I really liked it.
I’ll just rec a couple more shows:
Soul Eater- I’ll be the first to say that this isn’t for everyone; the early episodes have quite a lot of fanservice, though after the first three it decreases considerably for some reason. There’s also violence, psychological trauma, abuse (poor Crona), and the whole premise of “soul eating” (although they only eat the souls of people who have completely given themselves over to darkness- eating the souls of innocents, or even regular criminals, is an unambiguously evil act that literally turns you into a monster), but there are quite a lot of good things in the story, too. Like most shonen fighter shows, it’s all about friendship and camaraderie. It’s got a great blend of humor, ridiculous action, and character drama. It also has great animation, which is a definite plus in a story that revolves around action. I was also impressed by how far the adults are willing to go to protect the child characters- the kids are in genuine danger often enough, but it’s never as bad as in some shows coughNarutocough. Mostly, it’s exactly what I’m looking for in a show about supernatural child heroes- balanced, entertaining, starring a flawed-but-lovable heroine, and singing the praises of friendship every chance it gets.
Kino’s Journey- Kino is a traveler who never stays in one place for more than three days. She and her talking motorcycle are the only recurring characters. In each episode, Kino will visit one or more towns, each of which has some unique idea about how to solve humanity’s problems. Most of the time, the idea has a grain of truth to it, but is being executed badly- a direct democracy that kills people who vote for the losing side, for instance. Kino usually has a non-interference policy, and only breaks it if her life is being threatened. Likewise, the show doesn’t really try to convince the viewer of any particular viewpoint; it raises questions but refuses to offer answers, and very rarely makes moral judgements (occasionally Kino will offer an opinion- the only ones I remember are that she’s against genocide and ridiculous censorship). I suppose the main theme is that humans are flawed, and that while even our good ideas are generally far from perfect, there’s something to be said for trying. There is some violence (usually not graphic), but nothing I’d call fanservice. It’s only 13 episodes, and definitely worth the time if you’re a fan of stuff like this.
I guess that’s all, off the top of my head. There’s a lot of great stuff out there- you just have to know what you’re looking for and what bothers you, and watch/read reviews before you dive into anything that might contain stuff you don’t want to see.
I’m very much of the opinion that a story can be useful or beneficial to Christians without expressly promoting Christianity. A story can even be useful and beneficial if it portrays (or even advocates) some incorrect things, provided the viewer is not blindly ripping their belief system from a work of fiction. Obviously a mature viewer has to think about and process what they watch, rather than thoughtlessly accept it.
With that in mind, there are lots of animes that can be good for Christians, but very few that are necessarily good for Christians. Even the best ones aren’t going to teach you the faith, but they might showcase certain virtues or make you a better person by exposing you to the stories of heroic, virtuous individuals. Or not. It really depends on the viewer as much as on the show.
And, of course, I know some people don’t really care whether their media makes them a better person, so long as it entertains and is not, in itself, sinful. I’m obviously not one of them, but there are plenty of shows for people with that viewpoint, too.
I’ve been known to enjoy shows that many people here would find disturbing or unacceptable (I thought the ultra-violent Baccano! was awesome, whatever that says about me), but there are a lot of good shows out there. Youkokun has already listed most of my favorites (that list is freakishly close to my own- you even listed After School Nightmare!), so I’ll second all the opinions on that one (except for Kodocha, and the warnings about Chobits and Excel Saga, as I haven’t seen any of those).
I’ll add that besides its “human moments”, the Fruits Basket manga has many very good moral lessons in it. One that stuck with me was Momiji’s story about the foolish traveler, who gave away all of his possessions and eventually even his body, to people who didn’t actually need the help. In some senses, he was foolish- but Momiji doesn’t think so, and it’s clear from the larger story that such “foolish” sacrifices can have very positive consequences. Tohru manages to help the other characters by selflessly loving them and trying to help them, something that the villain of the story can’t understand. I think that message about selflessness and forgiveness, if nothing else, is a very Christian ideal. Anyways, I really liked it.
I’ll just rec a couple more shows:
Soul Eater- I’ll be the first to say that this isn’t for everyone; the early episodes have quite a lot of fanservice, though after the first three it decreases considerably for some reason. There’s also violence, psychological trauma, abuse (poor Crona), and the whole premise of “soul eating” (although they only eat the souls of people who have completely given themselves over to darkness- eating the souls of innocents, or even regular criminals, is an unambiguously evil act that literally turns you into a monster), but there are quite a lot of good things in the story, too. Like most shonen fighter shows, it’s all about friendship and camaraderie. It’s got a great blend of humor, ridiculous action, and character drama. It also has great animation, which is a definite plus in a story that revolves around action. I was also impressed by how far the adults are willing to go to protect the child characters- the kids are in genuine danger often enough, but it’s never as bad as in some shows coughNarutocough. Mostly, it’s exactly what I’m looking for in a show about supernatural child heroes- balanced, entertaining, starring a flawed-but-lovable heroine, and singing the praises of friendship every chance it gets.
Kino’s Journey- Kino is a traveler who never stays in one place for more than three days. She and her talking motorcycle are the only recurring characters. In each episode, Kino will visit one or more towns, each of which has some unique idea about how to solve humanity’s problems. Most of the time, the idea has a grain of truth to it, but is being executed badly- a direct democracy that kills people who vote for the losing side, for instance. Kino usually has a non-interference policy, and only breaks it if her life is being threatened. Likewise, the show doesn’t really try to convince the viewer of any particular viewpoint; it raises questions but refuses to offer answers, and very rarely makes moral judgements (occasionally Kino will offer an opinion- the only ones I remember are that she’s against genocide and ridiculous censorship). I suppose the main theme is that humans are flawed, and that while even our good ideas are generally far from perfect, there’s something to be said for trying. There is some violence (usually not graphic), but nothing I’d call fanservice. It’s only 13 episodes, and definitely worth the time if you’re a fan of stuff like this.
I guess that’s all, off the top of my head. There’s a lot of great stuff out there- you just have to know what you’re looking for and what bothers you, and watch/read reviews before you dive into anything that might contain stuff you don’t want to see.
- Status